4th Blogiversary Giveaway and Chocolate Oreo Poke Cake

Four years ago today I started this blog.  Honestly, I can't believe it!

Cooking for me started in college about six or seven years ago (eep!) when I was living on my own without a meal plan and I needed a way to feed myself.  A few years later I started this blog as a way to collect and share my favorite recipes with friends and family.  If you want to read the full story about me, there's a link called "About Me" (how about that!) at the top of the page.

I'd say it was only in the past one to two years that I started taking this blog more seriously and began to network with other food bloggers and try to make my photos prettier.  Honestly, that's tough when you work full-time and are racing to get dinner on the table and have a hungry husband not patient enough to get that food photo staged justttt right.  I'm making a better effort but realize I will never be a professional photographer and that's okay by me :).

So back to my celebration.  Today I'm sharing a super simple cake.  Seriously, anybody can make it.  And that's kind of the point I want to make is that even the most inexperienced person can be inspired to pick up a recipe and follow it to create something delicious.  Heck, that's how my husband got started with his now infamous Peanut Butter Cup Brownie Bottom Cheesecake!

It's not my best food photography and that's to be expected because it was taken inside of a dimly lit restaurant when I brought it for my brother's birthday dinner in the dead of Winter.  I know that the days when I feel like I've created better pictures are ones where there's good light - on the weekends or in the Summer evenings.  I'll even admit that the recipe is really just doctored cake mix.  But no one has to know that because all they'll taste is how extremely delicious and moist it is :).

Now for the giveaway part. Four years of blogging means four prizes to celebrate!  I have one grand prize: a custom Tastebook filled with 100 recipes that have been featured on my blog. This was suggested by a number of my facebook fans so I hope that you enjoy it!  I'll also have three second prizes featuring some of my favorite local foods.  This was also a suggestion by my fans.  See, I really do do all of this for you!!

You can enter to win below and then next week, I'll pick second prize winners on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  The grand prize winner will be announced on Friday!  So don't delay and join in my celebration!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Chocolate Oreo Poke Cake

Ingredients

• 1 box Devil’s Food cake mix
• Oreos, roughly chopped (you’ll need almost an entire package)
• 1 large packet instant Oreo pudding
• 2 cups milk
• 1 small tub Cool Whip 

 Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9x13 baking dish.
2. Prepare the devil’s food cake as directed on box; stir in a large handful of the chopped Oreos. Pour batter into a prepared dish and bake for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
3. Combine the milk and Oreo pudding mix in a medium-sized bowl and whisk until smooth.
4. While the cake is still warm, use a chopstick or the end of a wooden spoon to poke holes all over the top of the cake.  Quickly pour the pudding over the cake and spread evenly so it will soak into all of the holes. Top with more chopped Oreos. 
5. Allow cake to cool completely. Spread the Cool Whip over the top of the cake and sprinkle with more chopped Oreos. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Source: Sing for Your Supper